December 1st 2010 was a decidedly unpleasant day for birding with a gale force easterly wind blowing up the Humber estuary. As I had been undertaking a survey along the Humber at Pywipe I was driving on the seawall in my vehicle with waves breaking over the car and it felt rather scary with the vehicle buffeted by the wind and spray. Suddenly, I saw this juvenile Pomarine Skua lift off from the water close to the seawall and settle again next to the carcass of a Common Gull which it may have killed. It was being thrown about by the wind and waves but continued to feed on the gull. I hung my 500 lens out of the window and tried to get some shots of which this was my favourite, showing the water and spray flying off the bird as it battled the wind. At one stage a Greater Black-backed Gull hovered over the skua and actually picked it from the water holding it by the crown but the skua broke free and returned to its meal! see image below.

Canon 1D4 with a Canon 500 f4 lens

1/320th second at 800 ISO and 5.6